SEA Games: Wushu star Agatha Wong overcame ‘bullying’ to become PH sports’ golden girl

By Joseph Almer Pedrajas

Before becoming the Philippines’ latest wushu star, the country’s two-time SEA Games gold medalist Agatha Wong revealed  she had to overcome bullying.

 

Behind her intimidating moves in the discipline through her slow, relaxed movements and balance during the two events for the Southeast Asian games wushu competitions, Wong bared that she had been bullied several times during her early age.

“Actually, [the bullying] started when I was kindergarten, then grade school and high school,” she said in an interview with the Manila Bulletin before the awarding ceremony at the World Trade Center in Pasay City Tuesday.

“[Also] one time in college and one time din sa wushu, and sa swimming and sa karate, na-bully din ako,” she added.

The 21-year-old multi-talented athlete said she was “an easy victim of bullying” because she is “really shy and a meek person as compared to who [she is] now.”

“But when I got older, when I turned 17 to 18 years old, I started realizing na people shouldn’t treat other people like that,” Wong, an athlete-advocate, said.

“Kaya nga I’m really an advocate for fighting for yourself.”

Bullied many times over, Wong never considered pursuing wushu to do any harm. Instead, she took these as fuel to her fire in striving to become better in her sports.

“Kasi it’s really different. Dito pa lang sa competition, parang the crowd’s on edge,”  said Wong, who started training for wushu when she was eight.

 

“Is the athlete gonna fall? Magkakamali kaya ang athlete? Ano kaya ang score nito? It so funny and makes me excited,” she said.

“Wushu is really a beautiful sports and not many Filipinos know it.”

 

Wong competed closely against Vietnam’s and Brunei’s athletes during the two wushu events.

During taolu taijiquan, Brunei’s Basma Lachkar logged 9.55 and Vietnam’s Tran Thi Minh Huyen, 9.53 behind her 9.67.

In taolu taijijuan where Wong made 9.65, her protagonists also made it to the top three, with Huyen recording 9.63 and Lachkar with 9.62.

“Vietnam and Brunei are really good. Actually, I’m really really proud na halos kasing level kami,” Wong said.

Going for her second gold, Wong said she needed to focus while delivering her almost four-minute performance.

In winning her second event, she said, “kailangan you know how to deal pressure talaga and you should know how to mute the crowds  kasi it will make you distracted.”

Wong stressed that hard work beats talent when it comes to winning.

“Kailangan lang talaga ng hard work kasi minsan kahit meron ka namang talent pero hindi ka naman hardworking, wala ka ring mararating,” she said.

“So even if sometimes, people who aren’t that smart, they work hard and they still passed, di ba? So I really have to work hard just as twice to get where I am today.”

 

As Philippine sports’ golden girl.

 

Source: Manila Bulletin